India Raises Record Grain Outlook, Cuts Sugar Output Estimate
- Food grain production seen at 273.38 million tons: ministry
- Rice, wheat, pulses estimates raised; sugar forecast reduced
A worker carries a bundle of uncleaned rice paddy at an Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) wholesale market in Jalandhar, Punjab, India, on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017. India’s inflation is below the mid-point of the central bank's target, the government is likely to achieve its fiscal deficit target of 3.5 percent of GDP, monsoon-sown food grain production is expected to be the highest in at least 14 years and revenue is expected to surge because of a tax amnesty and the cash ban.
Photographer: Dhiraj Singh/BloombergIndia increased its already record forecast for grain production, while lowering its forecasts for sugar and oilseeds.
Grain production may total 273.38 million metric tons in 2016-17, up from a previous forecast for 272 million tons, the Farm Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. Wheat output is forecast at a record 97.44 million tons, from 96.6 million tons predicted in February, it said.